The Latest: Congress passes aviation, hurricane tax bill

WASHINGTON — The Latest on a bill to prevent a shutdown of federal aviation programs and provide tax relief to hurricane victims (all times local):

4 p.m.

Congress has passed a bill to prevent a shutdown of federal aviation programs and provide tax relief to hurricane victims.

The measure now goes to President Donald Trump to sign. The bill extends the operating authority of the Federal Aviation Administration through March. If Congress had not acted, the agency would have been forced to partially shut down on Saturday, the last day of the federal budget year.

The bill also includes five tax provisions for hurricane victims. One would allow them to withdraw money from 401(k) or other retirement accounts without penalty for storm-related expenses.

The House initially passed the bill with provisions that would have expanded the private flood insurance market. The Senate stripped out those provisions and sent it back to the House, which passed it again.

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1:45 p.m.

The Senate has passed a bill to prevent a shutdown of federal aviation programs and provide tax relief to hurricane victims.

GOP leaders used expedited procedures to pass the bill and send it back to the House — after stripping provisions that would have expanded the private flood insurance market.

The House passed the bill earlier in the day with the flood insurance provisions, just hours before members planned to leave town for the weekend. But there are procedures that can be used to pass the revised measure without a full, in-person vote.

The legislative back-and-forth comes two days before the end of the federal budget year when authority for the Federal Aviation Administration and several health programs in the bill are due to expire.

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11:28 a.m.

The House has passed a bill to avoid a partial shutdown of federal aviation programs. It also wraps in tax relief for hurricane victims and an expansion of the private flood insurance market.

The Senate still must act, but it doesn’t have much time. House Republican leaders are gambling that the Senate will pass the bill without changes before the end of the federal budget year at midnight on Saturday when authority for the Federal Aviation Administration and several health programs included in the bill expire.

The House voted just hours before lawmakers were scheduled to leave town for the weekend.

The bill also includes five tax provisions for hurricane victims. One would allow them to withdraw money from 401(k) or other retirement accounts without penalty for storm-related expenses.

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